Feed-roll for planing and surfacing machines



(No Model.) 1 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

L. P. HOYT. FEED ROLL FOR PLANING AND SURFAGING MACHINES. No. 404,486.

Patent-ed June 4, 1889,

Rs. Phm-Lnhu n her. Wnshmghn. 0.0

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

L. P. HOYT. FEED ROLL FOR PLANING AND SURFAGING MACHINES.

PatentedJun N. PETERS. FhuwL-tha n mr. washin wn. D. c.

UNITED STATES 'ATENT FFIGE.

LUCIUS P. HOYT, ()F AURORA, ILLINOIS.

FEED-ROLL FOR PLAN'ING AND SURFACING MACHINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 404,486, dated June 4, 1889.

Application filed October 31, 1888.

To aZZ whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, LUCIUs P. HOYT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Aurora, in the county of Kane and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Feed-Rolls for Planing and Surfacing Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to power-driven seetional feed-rolls adapted for service in planing'and surfacing machines and involving as a matter of construction a set of hollow rollsections which are normally held concentric with the axis of a rotary shaft by springs and engaged by projections .upon said shaft, so that, while the roll-sections will be-carried round with the revolving shaft, they can yield independently of one another to boards of unequal thickness or to different thicknesses in the lumber.

The object of my invention is to provide an arrangement of springs by which the rollsections can have a comparatively large latitude of free yielding action, and to provide certain details of construction serving to increase the general efficiency of sectional feedrolls.

To the attainment of the foregoing and other useful ends my invention consists in matters hereinafter set forth, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents in side elevation a portion of a planing or surfacing machine with an arrangement of gearing which can be employed for driving the feed-roll. Fig. 2 represents in front elevation a couple of gear-connected rolls whereof the upper roll embodies my invention. In said View several pieces of lumber of unequal thickness are shown passing under the sectional feed-roll, and the sides of an ordinary surfacing or planing machine are shown in cross-section. Fig. 3 represents an end view of the hub or spring-carrier of any one of the roll-sections, and shows a section taken transversely through the roll-section on line 3 3, Fig. 4. Fig.4 is a section on line 4. 4, Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is an end view of one part of the roll-section. Fig. 6 is aview similar to Fi 3, but shows the roll-section raised independently of the shaft. Fig.7 is a perspective view of the hub or spring-carrier.

In said drawings, A indicates a powerdriven rotary shaft provided with a plurality of roll-sections B, as in Fig. 2. These rollsections are arranged upon and connected with the shaft in such a way that, while the rotation of the shaft will cause the roll-sections to revolve therewith, each roll-section is capable of a yielding movement independently of the shaft. Said action on the part of the roll-sections is illustrated in Fig.2, wherein three pieces of lumber C 0' C differing from one another in thickness, are shown in the act of passing between the lower feedroll D of a planing-machine and an upper sectional feed-roll composed of a like number of roll-sections B, arranged upon the shaft A,

which in said view is illustrated in dotted lumber of varying thickness, they will be positively driven from the shaft, reference is made to the construction illustrated by the last five figures of the drawings. Each rollsection B is provided ith an axial bore b, which, asillustrated in Fig. 5, is made somewhat larger than the shaft in order to permit the roll-section to be moved in directions lateral to the shaft. The bore b is expanded within the roll-section, so as to provide the latter within an annular chamber b for containing the springs which are arranged about the shaft in lines tangential thereto and subject to compression and expansion in said lines in contradistinction to springs arranged for compression and expansion in lines radial to the shaft. The rotary shaft A carries a collar or hub E, which may also be termed a spring-carrier, since it is secured upon the shaft and provided with a set of projections 6 having their sides E adapted to form jaws for holding certain ends of the springs e. The-projections e are arranged within the chamber 19 of the roll-section, which said chamber is of such diameter that when the roll-section is concentric with the shaft sufficient space will be left between annular wall of chamber 19 and the projections e to'permit the desired extent of lateral play or movement on the part of the roll-section. The roll-section is also provided with a set of abutments b for holding certain ends of the springs, so that when the roll-section is lifted independently of the shaft one or more of the springs which are interposed as connections between the shaft and roll-section can be compressed between one or more jaws E on the shaft and one or more abutmentsb of the roll-section, as hereinafter more particularly set forth.

The hub or spring-carrier E (which is best shown in perspective, Fig. 7) is adapted to fit and key upon or similarly connect with the I 5 shaft A, whereby such connection between the shaft and the hub can be established as will cause the shaft to carry the hub with it during operation. The arrangement of the jaws E serves to provide the hub E with a set of peripherally-arranged recesses, each of which contains a spring e, arranged between a couple of plates or followers e, which are movable toward and away from one another, so that under circumstances hereinafter de- 2 5 scribed the spring can be compressed between the plates, in place of being engaged directly by the jaws and the abutments b, it being here observed that said plates or followers, as I have termed them, are also go in the nature of washers, which afford good bearings for the ends of the springs and which serve as a convenient way of establishing connections between the springs and the roll-section when the abutments l) are 5 formed by recesses l), formed radially in the end walls b and b of the chamber b Vhile various guide devices could be employed for retaining the plates and springs within their-allotted notches or recesses in the huh, I employ as a simple arrangement pins 8 it being seen that each recess is provided with a pin, and that, while the ends of the pin are fixed, respectively, in opposite walls of its allotted recess, it passes through 5 holes in the plates, as shown in Fig. 4, whereby, while the plates are normally held by the spring against said opposite walls of the recess, either plate may, under properly-applied force, be moved toward its companion plate,

so as to compress the spring.

As shown in Fig. 7, the ends of the plates e extend beyond the ends of the hub E. By thus arranging the plates their said projecting ends are received within the radial recesses b in the end walls of the chamber b when the roll-section is arranged so as to bring the projections e of the hub between the end walls of said chamber, it being understood that when the hub is thus arranged within the rolLsection the projecting ends of the plates at one end of the hub will be re ceived within one set of recesses b at one end of the chamber U within the roll-section, while, 011 the other hand, the projecting ends of the plates at the opposite end of the hub will be received in a like set of recesses at the opposite end of said chamber,

The recesses b may hereinafter be termed guid eways, since for certain purposes I utilize their walls Z) as abutments, which, during the lateral play of the roll-section, permit a slip on the part of the plates or washers e away from and toward the shaft, and during such action serve to guide the plates. It will also be seen that the roll-section, considered as an entirety, contains a cylindric or substantially cylindric chamber formed as an enlargement of its bore Z), which said chamber has at each end wall a setof radially-arranged guideways b.

To permit the introduction of the hub E into the roll-section, and, further, to permit the ready formation of said guideways, the roll-section is conveniently formed of two parts, which can be bolted or otherwise se cured together, and which, when thus fitted together, go to make up a complete roll-section containing, as aforesaid, a chamber for the hub. \Vhile no limitation is placed upon the relative size of said parts or the mode of dividing the roll-section, I find it convenient to construct it with the part b constituting the main portion of the roll-section and recessed to form all of the chamber 1), except, one end wall, which latter can be formed by the end piece If. Said end piece I) can, as shown in Fig. 4, fit within the shell or part b at a point adjacent to one end of the latter. WVith such arrangement the end part b'flwhich is in the nature of a disk or cap, can be se cured in place in any suitable way-as, for example, by screws or bolts. (Indicated in dotted lines bZFig. at.) It is understood that the cap or end part b has a bore corresponding to the bore Z), Fig. 5, and that the said end piece or cap I) will have aseries of radial grooves or guidewaysl), correspondjn g to those shown in Fig. 5, one of said guidewa 't' l) in the cap or part I) being indicated in crossseetion, Fig. 4.

The hub or spring-carrier E is normally in a central position within the roll-section,which has its chamber 1) made somewhat largerthan the main body portion a of the hub or springcarrier; also, the portions of the here I) which form openings at the ends of the rollsection are made somewhat larger than any portions of the hub which may extend within the sameas, for example, should the hub have end necks or bosses c, Fig. 7, extended from the hub to afford additional bearings, the openings b will be made somewhat larger than the same; but in any case involving the aforesaid construction the openings l) should be larger than the shaft A, so as to permit the 1 5 roll-section to yield independently of the shaft.

Then the hub or spring-carrier is properly arranged within the roll-section, the latter will be normally concentric to the shaft A, but may under pressure he forced into either 1' 0 IIO of various positions eccentric to the shaft.

As soon, however, as such pressure is removed, the roll-section will, by reason of its contained springs, be instantly restored to its position shaft will move the same against a yieldingspring-resistance.

Connection between the hub and the shell or roll-section is established by the plates or followers 6', which are so held apart by the springs as to engage the sides b of the guideways I). \Vhen, for example, the increased thickness of a piece of lumber passing under the sectional feed-roll tends to raise one of its sect-ions, the rise of the roll-section will be against a spring-resistance, as illustrated in Fig. 6, wherein the roll-section is shown raised and eccentric to the shaft A.

When the roll-section is lifted independently of the shaft A, the compression of one or more of the springs takes place in a way to oppose a yielding resistance to the rise of the roll-section and to restore it to its normal position when the upward pressure of the roll is relievedas, for example, it will be seen in Fig. (3 that of the pair of plates or followers 6 to .the extreme left the upper edge I) of the guideway at such point has, by reason of the lift or roll-section independently of the hub E, left and risen to some extent above the upper'plate or. follower 6, while, on the other hand, the lower one of the edges 19 of said guideway is still in engagement with the lower one of the plates or followers, which, by the rise of the roll-section independently of the hub, has been lifted, so as to cause a compression of the spring between said two plates or followers. that the compression of the spring is in opposition to the rise of the roll-section, and, on the other hand, it will be observed that the pair of plates or followers 6 shown to the lower extreme right in said figure are at such time received at or near the outer end of their allotted guideway, such condition being incident to the lateral movement of the roll-section independently of the shaft. Under all circumstances, however, any upward pressure against the roll-section sufficient to overcome the spring-resistance will cause it to yield and rise, and in all cases such springcompression will occur in a way to oppose a yielding resistance to the rise on the part of the roll-section, while at the same time the roll section will practically be positively driven from the shaft.

In Fig. 2 the shaft of the sectional roll is provided with gears a,which can be connected with the gears don the journals of the lower roll in any suitable wayas, for example, by expansible gearing. (Indicated inFig. 1, but not necessary to be here described, since in such case any known or suitable arrangement of expansion-gearin g can be employed.) It may be also observed that any known or suitable automatic spring device for controlling the rise of its boxes can be employed, so as to provide for the rise of the shaft when sufficient upward pressure is exerted against In this connection it will be noted.

all of the roll-sections, an indication of one of such arrangements being shown in Fig. 1. Such arrangement need not, however, be here described. \Vhere the shaft A is thus geared, it is understood that, desirably, the drivingpower is primarily applied to the lower roll D, (to which end a large driving-gear D is shown on the axle or one of the journals of said roll,) and thence transmitted through suitable gearing to the shaft A, which extends through all of the roll-sections B, and is connected therewith in a way to permit the roll-sections (which may be of any desired number) to yield both independently of one another and of the shaft.

The roll-sections are each connected with the shaft by a sliding connection permitting the roll-sections to shift or move laterally to and independently of the shaft, which said lateral shift or movement on the part of any one of the roll-sections is opposed by a yielding spring-resistance that tends to normally maintain the roll-section concentric to the shaft. The connection between the roll-section and shaft permits the shaft to be geared and adapts the sectional roll to either light or'heavy work. While the sectional roll will yield so far as may be necessary, twisting of the springs will be avoided.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that, broadly considered, the springs are arranged for compression and expansion in lines tangential to the shaft and held or confined between jaws or projections on the shaft and abutments on the interior of the roll-section, in contradistinction to Patent No. 322,324, wherein the rubber cylindric springs till the space between the shaft and inner cylin dric wall of the hollow roll-section, and

in further contradistinction to Patent No.

260,677, wherein the spaces between segmental recesses in a hub on the shaft and corresponding opposing portions of the inner wall of the hollow roll-section are filled by solid rubber springs, it being observed that in all of such arrangements the compressing of the spring in one direction so bulges it out in .directions transverse to the line of compression as to prevent a free yielding action on the part of the roll-section.

What I claim as my invention is 1. The combination, with a rotary shaft and a feed-roll section arranged about the same, of a set of springs interposed as connections between the shaft and roll-section and arranged in lines tangential tothe shaft, the compression and expansion of said springs during the lateral movement, hereinbefore set forth, of the roll-section being in lines which are retain ed between followers e, that 10 engage said guideways, said springs and followers being arranged in recesses on the hub and therein retained by pins 6 substantially as and for the purpose described.

LUOIUS P. HOYI.

Witnesses: 0. C. HACKNEY, I. J. BUDLONG. 

